Recipe for Corn Salsa with Zing

Did you know that an ear of corn averages 800 kernels in 16 rows?  That’s a lot of little nuggets of flavor on one cob.  It’s no wonder that many of us become corn-obsessed by late July.  Now, I have always been a low-maintenance kind of corn eater.  Boil it, roll it in a little butter, salt it, and eat it.  At times, I do like to add a little “ding” noise, like an old typewriter, as I reach the end of the row.  This was merely for the entertainment of my two boys, of course.  However, I abruptly stopped this little show when one of them asked, “What’s a typewriter?  That sounds like something really old-fashioned.”

Bam!  Reality smacks me in the face!   Hair becoming grayer…wrinkles forming around eyes…

Is it not enough that I have to contend with the fact that my friends and I will be “celebrating” our 20-year high school reunion next month?  Just when I’m feeling youthful and vibrant, I’ll walk past a construction site and…nothing!  Not a wolf whistle, not a cat call, not one single “Hey, baby.”  What cruelty!

Ah well, we’ll always have corn.  Getting back to the recipe, this salsa can be used as a chip-dipping appetizer or as a perfect condiment for chicken, fish, pork, or beef.  My husband and I piled some on our salmon burgers last week.  What a treat!

Using two ears of cooked corn (boiled or grilled will do), cut the kernels off of the corn and place in a medium bowl.

Cut one half of a red bell pepper into 1/4-inch dice and add it to the bowl. 

One of the reasons that I wanted to make this salsa was the appearance of the first ancho poblano pepper in my garden. Unfortunately, the pepper is out of focus, but you get the idea. You could also use a jalapeno pepper, though you might want to use only half of the jalapeno because it has more spice than the pepper I used.

Mince the pepper, removing the seeds and membranes if you want to temper the heat. Add the minced pepper to the bowl.

Stir in 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Gently stir in 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro. 

Serve with the entree of your choice or just eat it straight if you love corn as much as I do.

Other corn recipes:
Simply Recipes’ Spicy Corn Fritters
Closet Cooking’s Avocado & Sweet Corn Salsa
White on Rice Couple’s Salmon-Corn Cakes

Corn Salsa with Zing

2 ears boiled or grilled corn
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 ancho poblano pepper or 1/2 – 1 jalapeno pepper, seeds & membranes removed, & minced
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste

Cut the kernels off of the corn and place in a medium bowl.  Add the diced red bell pepper and minced hot pepper to the bowl.  Stir in the extra-virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Gently stir in the chopped cilantro.  Serve.

Serves 4 as a condiment.

Printable recipe

Tagged as: chile, corn, red pepper, salsa